Northland - Russell, Bay of Islands

“Refreshing Rascals and Reprobates since 1827”. A statement by the oldest pub in NZ, based in Russell, which was once described by a Victorian observer as the centre of a “population addicted to drunkenness. This little village is the very stronghold of vice.” Russell is a small seaside village with a big historical footprint: it was the country's first seaport, its first European settlement and first capital. Once, it was a lawless town, where the sailors from the whaling ships enjoyed drinking, brawling, and prostitution, giving the town the nickname of ‘the hellhole of the Pacific’. “The town is a Gomorrah, the scourge of the Pacific, and should be struck down by the ravages of disease for its depravity.”

To reach this ‘Hellhole’ we took the narrow winding road along the coast from the highway after leaving Whangarei. Far from a stronghold of vice, Russell exudes middle class historic charm. Many of its historic buildings remain today from the 1840s, including NZ’s first licensed hotel and bar, ‘The Duke of Marlborough’. This we headed to, caving into temptation on route as we passed an ice cream parlour with delicious flavours - ‘Fig manuka honey’, ‘Black doris plum and crème fraiche’, ‘Boysenberry ambrosia yoghurt’, ‘Maple walnut’, ‘Gumdrops’ 😋.

Ice-cream in hand, we drifted along the tree-lined waterfront, the whole place diffused with a watery opal light. This is the life! After marvelling at a majestic 150yr old Morton Bay Fig Tree we went inside the Duke of Marlborough, under the white wooden canopy of its porch and balconies.

Sadly no rascals in sight, we felt we were now amongst the privileged, as Lilz sipped his coffee listening to the comforting crackle of the fire and the genteel hubbub of the company next to us. The pink walls and oddment selection of pictures wrapped us in a serene soft glow. This was only sustained outside as the sun slowly set above the pearly waters.

Our good fortune continued as we took the 10min Okiato to Opua ferry to Paihia, with the ferryman never coming to our car to ask for the $18 fare. Free ferry for us! We’d base ourselves in seaside Paihia for the next three nights and visit some of Northland’s attractions.Leggi altro